A number of manufacturing applications exist in which large structural workpieces are assembled and, in many cases, joined to form a final structure. For example, large monument machine tools and tooling may be used for assembling large workpieces, such as large panels used for assembling wing planks, wing panels or wing assemblies of aircraft. However, traditional systems have been barriers to attaining a more efficient manufacturing process.
For example, current manufacturing processes for large, structural workpieces feature large, floor-mounted machine tools and expensive tooling. The size of the assembly machines is a result of requirements for throat depth and the multiple custom axes for reaching all surfaces of the workpiece. These monument machines and tooling utilize excessive floor space and cannot be reconfigured between different types of structural workpieces. Furthermore, moving large workpieces, for example, by crane may be time-consuming and may create a bottleneck in the manufacturing process. Such delays may leave machine tools idled during material handling and set-up. Additionally, the traditional manufacturing is highly dependent on manual processes, such as fastening workpieces during the assembly process.
Accordingly, those skilled in the art continue with research and development efforts in the field of assembly manufacturing.